My Hardgainer Routine

[Overload]

For anyone that's interested, this has been the best routine I've been on to date. At 42 I am adding weight or reps every single week on every single exercise since I started this in the new year. I workout alone at home so certain exercises could be swapped for something a little better if you like.

Day 1:
- Leg Presses
- Weighted Dips
- 1 Arm DB Rows
- Lying Side Lateral Raises

Day 2:
- Trap Bar Deadlifts
- Parallel Grip Pullups
- Overhead Press
- Calf Raises

I just do 2 sets per exercise after warming up with as much weight as I can handle. Reps vary but are usually in the 6 - 12 range depending on the exercise. I do crank out the reps on leg presses though to anywhere from 20 - 30.

Simple and effective IMO. Very Beyond Brawn type routine with recovery dictating workout days, not the calendar.

Not that I'm a big strong guy but a routine like this has me doing 1 arm rows with 100lbs, dips with BW + 80 and trap bar deadlifts with double my BW. Which at the moment is 155lbs. So for me it's a very effecient routine where I can just focus on a handful of exercises and get better at them.

Peace

[tonguey]

Looks good to me. Is it a Monday/Friday kinda deal or just whatever takes you to recover?

You have a leg press machine at home? and also a trap bar? Daaaammn! I wish I had your home gym.

[Overload]

It's whenever I feel recovered but lately it's been Saturdays and Wednesdays. With other daily life stuff going on, I try to make one of the workout days a weekend. It will probably change to Mondays and Fridays in the summer.

Love the trap bar. Best investment I've made in any kind of bar. IA always recommends it and now I know why. Even with 2 herniated discs I can trap bar deadlift with no problems at all. As long as I'm still careful with form, but that goes for any exercise.

I got my bar off ebay. They're not that expensive and will definitely come in handy.

[sc]

Just curious: why don't you switch the rows on day 1 with the overhead presses on day 2 so that you have all pulling on day 1 and pressing on day 2? I, too, work a very abbreviated hardgainer routine 2X / week (or 3X / 2 weeks), but I always do the pressing and pulling movements on different days. Doubtless you have tried doing all pulling and pressing on respective days, right? Do you find your arrangement works better for gains, recovery, etc.?

[Overload]

I was doing a typical push/pull routine and found that the 2nd exercise always suffered. So if I did pullups followed by rows, I couldn't row as much as I row now by splitting it up. That of course is to be expected but I wanted to be able to handle as much weight as I could for each exercise so I found that by splitting it up I could do that and make better progress quicker. The other way I may progress on pullups consistently but it would take much longer on rows because each time I got better on pullups I was that much weaker for rows. Viscious cycle kind of thing.

Nothing wrong with push/pull of course, especially if you're going to do a little more volume like more exercises or sets. But this way I am basically working similar muscle groups twice a week as opposed to once but with low enough volume to have plenty of time for recovery. And with doing different exercises I still give a particular exercise a weeks rest so progress continues to this day for me.

So my main purpose for doing it this way was to be able to handle as much weight as possible for each exercise. In order for me to do that, I needed to be "fresh" for each exercise so I had to split it up. So for me, I do find my setup gives me better gains and recovery. Actually, the recovery comes from just working out twice a week. I think recovery would be equal if I was doing push/pull with similar volume. The strength gains have been great and steady for my age and weight so I can't complain.

For an experiment, I may change it as you suggested one of these days just to see how it affects the workout in general. I'll see how things go.

[sc]

Hi Overload,

You say, "For an experiment, I may change it as you suggested one of these days just to see how it affects the workout in general."

Well, just to let you know, I'm going to change my push/pull workout routine to your arrangement and see how I do on it. Needless to say, I also find that the second major press or pull exercise suffers on each respective workout day.

I, too, am an older lifter (52), but I have always stayed in very good aerobic shape, so i have been able to make great gains since last August. (Arms have gone from 13 5/8" to 15 1/4" with proportionate upper body development.) But I find that I need to stay very low volume (as you are doing). My needed recovery time seems to be more for CNS fatigue rather than muscle fatigue, however, so I think your type of routine is worth a try for me.

I'm actually looking forward to mixing it up a bit.

Thanks, and good luck.

[tonguey]

i have been able to make great gains since last August. (Arms have gone from 13 5/8" to 15 1/4" with proportionate upper body development.)

Whoa! thats almost two inches. Good job! I assume your weight has increased accordingly right?

[Overload]

My needed recovery time seems to be more for CNS fatigue rather than muscle fatigue, however



Same here. Muscles recover fairly quickly. It's the CNS that varies from person to person. I know mine can get taxed easily if I'm not careful. Even when I was doing 3 day splits with low volume I would have plateaued by now. With the 2 day split I can take that extra day if I feel I need it.

I think you'll find that by splitting up the push and pull you'll do much better on the other exercises.

Let me know how you like it.

Here's what I a nice, short intense routine and better diet has helped me do. Nothing tremendous but for being a light weight I'm making progress.

[wrangle]

you look solid bro- good pics,
I tried a simular routine like yours and made great progress as well, I try to tell other people about workouts like these, no one believes. :-(

[sc]

Tonguey,

Yes, my weight has increased accordingly--from 186 lbs. to 215 lbs. But my body fat % has increased a bit--from 13.8% to 16.4%. I'm not overly concerned about that right now, but I do plan to get it below 15% at some point.


Overload,

I just realized that you're doing only one upper body pressing movement and one upper body pulling movement in each workout. Boy, that *is* low volume. But I'll have to give it a try. (I have found dumbbell pullovers to be the best exercise for my back--such a good stretch and stimulation.)

By the way, have you ever tried any HIT training (e.g., negatives, pre-exhaustion, etc.)? If so, how did you do on that? Was it too much CNS fatigue?

Well, since you posted a couple of pictures, I'll post one as well. I'm not at your level, but I already knew that anyway from the weights you were using. (I can't do one-arm rows with 100lbs, nor dips with BW + 80 lbs.!)

If you imagine a guy with spindly 13" arms (and an upper body to match), well, that's how I was last August. (I had gotten this way from lots of running and biking and little upper body work.) Anyway, the attached picture was taken a few weeks ago. Even though my shirt is on, I think you can see that there's a lot more meat on my bones.

It's been a great ride!

[sc]

Sorry about the missing photo.

I guess the file upload process aborted because this BB allows uploads of only 39 KB or less.

Error: File Too Large. Limit for this filetype is 39.1 KB. Your file is 51.6 KB.

[Overload]

Hey SC, shrink the photos down until they get to the size limit.

I've never tried any true HIT routines but actually just ordered a book called "The New HIT" or something like that. My friend has been reading and recommended it as he knows I do abbreviated routines.

Yeah, my stuff is loooow volume. Basically just 1 exercise per body part in each workout. If my workouts go too long I start to feel it's a chore and since I like to go as heavy as I can for each exercise I need to keep it low so I can keep the intensity high. I've tried the less intensity way with more sets or exercises but I can't hold back on an exercise on purpose. Just not natural to me so stop when I have reps left in me. LOL

Must be nice to be over 200lbs. I'm just at 155lbs so I would have to go on an eating rampage to gain serious weight. I got as high as 175 but it was not a clean bulk. I hit 16% BF and I didn't like that for myself. So now I'm down to 12% and I'd like to hover around there while adding a little more muscle or shaping what I have a little more. I wouldn't mind dropping the BF a little bit more in order to show a little more definition. I just don't have that much weight to give up though. hehe

[sc]

Okay, I shrunk the photo down to < 39K (why didn't I think of that?).

Just remember, I'm not one of the hulks on this site, but compared to what I used to be, it's an amazing transformation. (Yea, I guess I'm kind of a load with a 16+% BF, so it's better that my shirt is on. :-) )

I actually have the New HIT book that you're talking about (by Darden), and I was thinking of trying some of the routines. I'd be interested to know if you try them, and, if so, what workout frequency you can tolerate. I'm almost certain that I couldn't tolerate more than 3X / 2 weeks (i.e., Mon., Fri., one week; Wed. the next), because I was actually on that workout frequency for about half of the time since last August, and I may have made my best gains with that arrangement--and this is with *no* HIT incorporated into the routines. I also took at least two two-week layoffs since I was very aware of overtraining symptoms, and I did everything I could to nip it in the bud and to recover *completely* whenever I began to feel the CNS "drain".

[tonguey]

Both of you guys look great for ppl of your age. Hell any age. Im younger than both of you and I dont look half as good. Its so refreshing seeing some middle aged ppl that are not 300lbs of fat in the US.

You guys keep up the good work!

[Overload]

You don't look your age SC. Can see the pecs through that shirt. Keep it up.

That's the book. My friend said it had some good routines in it. Looking forward to reading it and I'll let you know what I think.

Had a good workout yesterday. HAd to take all of last week off due to a cold so I'm sore today from my little abbreviated session. Felt great though to just lift again. Since it's just a 2 day split I don't like missing workouts.

Thanks tonguey for the compliments. Just trying not to be one a middle aged statistic. You're right, every where you turn you see an obese person these days. That will never happen with me, I can guarantee that.

Peace

[exmgq]

Both of you guys look great for ppl of your age. Hell any age. Im younger than both of you and I dont look half as good. Its so refreshing seeing some middle aged ppl that are not 300lbs of fat in the US.

You guys keep up the good work!

hey, hey, hey!!!!! whats with the old stuff?

and whats wrong with 300lb americans who have a year or two on them?

[wrangle]

hey, hey, hey!!!!! whats with the old stuff?

and whats wrong with 300lb americans who have a year or two on them?

300 lb americans are different than 300 lb monsters who happen to be american and can squat, bench and deadlift a ton!!

[Stormbringer]

I was doing a typical push/pull routine and found that the 2nd exercise always suffered. So if I did pullups followed by rows, I couldn't row as much as I row now by splitting it up. That of course is to be expected but I wanted to be able to handle as much weight as I could for each exercise so I found that by splitting it up I could do that and make better progress quicker. The other way I may progress on pullups consistently but it would take much longer on rows because each time I got better on pullups I was that much weaker for rows. Viscious cycle kind of thing.

Iron Addict, what is your opinion on this?

[exmgq]

300 lb americans are different than 300 lb monsters who happen to be american and can squat, bench and deadlift a ton!!

well its slightly over a ton now. :D

[tonguey]

300 lb americans are different than 300 lb monsters who happen to be american and can squat, bench and deadlift a ton!!

Very true. I wasnt talking about huge 300lb PLers who can squat three of the fat guys and have a couple lbs around the waist. I was talking about the ones that are 300 with almost 50% of their weight being blubber and need help to get dressed.

[iron addict]

Iron Addict, what is your opinion on this?

If it works, it works, thats ALL that matters.

IA